This disclosure generally relates to a method of forming a slot within a turbine disk for a gas turbine engine.
A gas turbine engine has a turbine disk to which are attached turbine blades. The turbine blades are seated in slots on the periphery of the turbine disk. Each slot has an interlocking shape to match a shape on a root of the turbine blade.
The turbine disk slot is commonly manufactured utilizing a broaching process. A broaching process utilizes a broach machine having long rails with cutting surfaces disposed on the rails. The cutting surfaces are run across the outside edge of the turbine disk to form each slot. Because of the numerous variations in slot designs, a rail used in the broach machine must be specially manufactured for each specific design. This process is both expensive and time consuming. Further, milling and grinding processes can be utilized but are also limited in the slot geometries that can be produced.